


Cold Hands, Warm Hearts

by NamelesslyNightlock



Series: Going Down Swinging [72]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Beginnings, First Meetings, Fluff, James "Rhodey" Rhodes is a Good Bro, Loki (Marvel) Feels, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, Loki (Marvel) is quite literally objectified, M/M, Pre-Slash, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Is a Good Bro, Waking Up, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-21
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:40:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26027356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NamelesslyNightlock/pseuds/NamelesslyNightlock
Summary: There’s a bronze statue in the centre of Oslo, a man reaching out with a desperate hand. Legend says he’s a mage, a trickster, a liar, cursed to remain frozen until he feels his soulmate’s first touch.But Tony’s never believed in legends, and this one is no exception.
Relationships: Loki/Tony Stark
Series: Going Down Swinging [72]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1330490
Comments: 95
Kudos: 627





	Cold Hands, Warm Hearts

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jaxonkreide](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaxonkreide/gifts).



> **jaxonkreide** suggested making [this prompt](https://writing-prompt-s.tumblr.com/post/184666422570/there-is-a-beautiful-statue-of-a-person-in-the) into a frostiron fic a fair a while back. I hope you like what I did with it!  
>   
>  **Prompt** — _“We’ll figure this out.”_

There’s a bronze statue in the centre of Oslo that’s shrouded in legend. At first glance, it doesn’t look like anything special– a young man with shoulder-length hair and his right hand outstretched, wearing clothes that seemed nothing like what anyone would wear today. The whole statue is dark in colour, except for its outstretched hand– polished a bright gold by the thousands of people who have held it. Perhaps its most striking feature is the man’s expression, crafted with such skill that one can almost feel him begging or pleading for something. Or perhaps, someone.

When asked, most people would say that he is begging for help to locate the one who can awaken him. You see, when a person finds their soulmate, they know it through a burst of magic as the bond is solidified at their first touch– and that surge of magic, it is said, is the only thing that could possibly break the curse which had been placed on the statue.

The legends vary, as all legends do. Some say he was a prince who was unkind and disliked, and cursed to spend the rest of his days alone. Some say that he was a Norse mage who boasted about his skill, and out of jealousy was cursed to stand frozen and helpless while the rest of the world progressed around him. Some say he played a trick on someone more powerful than himself, and was cursed as retribution. Others claim that he did nothing wrong at all, and merely fell out of favour with the wrong person.

But every variation agrees upon that one thing– when the man’s soulmate comes to touch the statue, he will live once more.

Tony always believed it to be ridiculous nonsense, just like the boars that will give you luck if you rub their noses. Another tourist trap, another place to battle crowds only for a single shoddy picture. It was a _statue_ , for god’s sake. There were far better things to do when one was on a trip to Norway, even if it was to visit the NEXUS as part of his college research. And besides, even if it _were_ real, that statue had been there for _centuries_. No one knew quite how long– so even if it _was_ true, this guy’s soulmate would doubtless be long dead.

Rhodey, on the other hand, wanted to do _all_ the touristy stuff, no matter how cliché. He wanted to visit the sculpture park, the royal palace, the Viking Ship Museum, and that bloody statue. And even though it made Tony want to grit his teeth, he wasn’t about to ruin Rhodey’s fun, not when Rhodey had been kind enough to go all the way across an ocean just so Tony wouldn’t be alone.

So they went to the museum, and the palace, and the park, and honestly some of it was actually fairly enjoyable. But when they got to the statue, they stood around for ages for a tour group to move out of the way, and then a little more while they waited for someone else to take fifteen thousand selfies with it, trying to get _just_ the right angle. When the statue was finally free, Tony was expecting that Rhodey would go and hold its hand, take the picture, and then they could leave. But, instead—

“Come on, Tony, just one picture,” Rhodey said. “It’ll be fun.”

“How? It’s a metal statue. All it’s going to do is give me germs, probably, do you _know_ how many people have touched that thing—”

“Really Tones?”

“I’ll take one of you,” Tony tried, holding out his hand for Rhodey’s phone.

“Aw, come on,” Rhodey tried, tilting his head and unleashing those killer puppy eyes that Tony hated, only because Rhodey _knew_ he couldn’t stand against them. “Just one? It’ll take five seconds.”

Knowing that Rhodey wasn’t going to give in – and recognising that it probably would be faster to just take the picture than it would be to keep arguing with him – Tony groaned, and stepped toward the statue. He didn’t bother handing over his phone. He didn’t want the picture anyway, and he didn’t mind if Rhodey decided to post it somewhere. He just wanted the whole thing to be over and done with, so that he could go back to his research.

As he moved closer, though, Tony couldn’t deny that the statue really was quite exquisite. The detail was insane– the shape of the coat, the patterns engraved on the pieces of armour. And that expression… just looking at it was enough to make Tony feel a little sorry for the guy. And wasn’t that just the stupidest thing? It was a _statue_.

Shoving the thought from his mind, Tony reached up toward the statue’s hand, which glinted gold in the afternoon sun. Then his fingers brushed over the warm metal, and Tony’s breath left him in a gasp as a rush of power surged through him that almost brought him to his knees.

Tony felt like his heart stopped for a moment and then began beating again twice as fast, like his skin was too hot and then too cold and like he was about to burst open, like there was too much happening inside him all at once. Then, just as suddenly, it began to fade away, retreating until it was just a steady warmth around his still racing heart—

Then someone fell into his arms, shuddering and gasping and clinging to Tony like they weren’t quite capable of keeping themselves upright. Tony grabbed onto them instinctively, still reeling, his eyes snapping open just as he realised that he had closed them.

And what he saw was… well, it was impossible. Because the low plinth was empty, and the man in Tony’s arms looked exactly like the statue had. He was wearing the same coat, though Tony could now see that it was made of leather, and with green lapels. The armoured furnishings were gold, and the engraving was exactly that which Tony had just admired mere moments earlier. The man’s hair was black and tickled at Tony’s cheek as he instinctively drew him close, and he was definitely very _alive_.

But… as well as his appearance, Tony noted that the man was breathing too quickly, gasping and panting and drawing in air as desperately someone who had just almost drowned.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Tony said, still confused but not going to let that get in the way of trying to calm the poor guy down. He still wasn’t quite believing, because he’d never been the kind of person who put much stock in legends. But then… he’d never been one to dismiss what was right in front of his eyes, either.

After all, he’d heard the stories– even if he hadn’t seen the statue in Instagram posts, Rhodey had repeated them excitedly on their way here.

And Tony knew exactly what that rush had meant.

Tony continued to make soothing noises, but he glanced around them, searching for Rhodey. They had gathered a rather considerable crowd, people taking pictures and videos, but it didn’t take long to spot the one Tony was looking for. He caught Rhodey’s gaze pleadingly, and despite his friend’s clear shock, Rhodey nodded his understanding and immediately began to tap at his phone. Tony knew he’d have a car there for them in seconds, and turned back to the man in his arms, clearing his throat in an attempt to wash away some of the nervousness he was feeling.

“Are you… all right?” he asked. It seemed like a stupid question with an obvious answer, but what else was there to say?

When the man glanced up, Tony noted that his eyes were a bright, shining green.

“Where am I?” the man asked, his voice hoarse. Then, his expression seemed to stutter a little as asked, “How long has it been?”

“We’re in Oslo,” Tony said gently. “And I’m… I’m sorry, but it’s been quite a while.”

The man closed his eyes, drawing in a deep breath as if that was the answer he had expected. And, god, Tony couldn’t even imagine. The statue had been standing right there in the middle of the city for _hundreds_ of years. Everyone, every _thing_ that he knew would be long gone.

Tony wasn’t sure what he could say. He couldn’t say that it was all right, because it wasn’t. Something like that could never be. But what, another ‘I’m sorry’? Any sympathy here would fall flat, and although Tony knew absolutely nothing about this guy, he could already tell that any pity would be unwanted. Perhaps, the only thing he could do was offer a little hope that things could get better.

“It’ll be okay, we’ll figure this out,” he promised. “You’ll see.”

“I suppose it can’t be any worse,” the man said, offering Tony something that was almost a smile.

“Worse than what?” Tony asked curiously.

“Than where I am from.” Tony must have looked surprised, or maybe concerned– for the man continued with, “Do not worry. I doubt that they will come for me.”

That only made Tony all the more confused, because… how could they come for him, when it had been so long? Maybe the man didn’t realise _just_ how long it had been. Tony thought that he should probably explain, but… the words were evading him again, and besides. He didn’t think it was the kind of conversation they should have in the middle of the street, surrounded by onlookers.

Thankfully, he noticed Rhodey flagging down a car that managed to push its way through the still growing crowd, and he let go of the man in his arms just enough to begin leading him in that direction.

“Come on, let’s go somewhere quieter,” Tony said. “Then we can talk.”

The man nodded without any hesitation– Tony supposed the man had no reason to distrust him. Even if they hadn’t been soulmates… he had nowhere else to go.

Tony was worried that they would have to battle through the curious crowd, but everyone seemed rather keen to keep their distance. He was confused for a moment, before he remembered all the legends, the different reasons that had been given for the curse. Perhaps Tony should have been worried as well, but… he wasn’t about to judge someone by legends that had suffered centuries of retellings. And besides, he _was_ Tony’s soulmate, and had spent those hundreds of years as an inanimate object.

Tony figured he didn’t really have a reason to distrust this guy, either.

“You okay, Tony?” Rhodey asked as they reached him.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “Yeah, I’m good.”

Rhodey didn’t ask anything else. Tony knew he must have been weirded out – hell, _Tony_ was still weirded out – but Rhodey was more than able to recognise that what Tony needed was a little bit of privacy. He opted to sit in front with the driver, directing her straight to their hotel, while Tony and his soulmate climbed into the back.

“Tony,” the man said once they were settled.

“Hmm?” Tony asked, reaching over to help him with his seatbelt.

“That’s your name?”

“Oh,” Tony said, glancing up and meeting that bright green gaze with a smile. “Yeah, that’s me. And yours?”

“Loki,” he said.

“Then, it’s nice to meet you, Loki,” Tony said.

“Yes,” Loki replied, his lips curving up into a smirk. “It is very nice to meet you, as well.”

Tony let out half a laugh at that, because– yeah, he supposed it would have been. The whole thing was more than a little surreal– you could place a safe bet that the moment Tony knew Loki was feeling well enough, he was going to be asking a few thousand questions. He didn’t know where they would go from here, what they would need to deal with. It certainly wasn’t going to be easy, but… well, like he said. They’d figure it out.

And besides, no matter what happened next– Tony could at least be assured that it wasn’t going to be boring.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [When Hearts Warm](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26125900) by [Silver_Sylph](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silver_Sylph/pseuds/Silver_Sylph)




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